Round 3--Pittsburgh Wine Gathering

Round 3 will be at La Tivola Italiana Restaurant on Mt. Washington. I've never dined there but I hear it's great. It's a few streets back off the main scenic street. I'm targeting November 6th or November 13th, start giving feedback which date is best.

This will be a Brown Bag/blind tasting. The brown bags they put your bottle in at PA Wine & Spirits are fine to use. Remove the entire capsule so there is no hint of the wine. Do not mark anything on the bag, we will number them at the restaurant. You can mark an "R" or "W" for red or white so we keep them seperated unless you can somehow remember which is red and which is white.

Blind tastings are fantastic, the best way to give honest opinions about a wine without any preconceptions of the producer, ratings, region etc.....and guessing the grape, region, or country is part of the fun. Of course, this is not a contest, just a gathering of geeks to talk about wine and have some laughs.

As always, anyone (who is bringing wine) is invited.

Here is a link to the restaurant
http://www.latavolaitalianarestaurant.com/

More from yelp.com
http://www.yelp.com/biz/la-tavola-italiana-restaurant-and-pizzeria-pittsburgh

Either night looks good for me.

Brown Bags are fun - should be a great time. Looking forward to it.

dontime

I'm going to a CF wine dinner 11/7 so I'd vote for 11/13 but 2 nights of great wine in a row doesn't suck either.

Either date works for me as well. Thanks for setting up J2K.

Hi,
Im new to this forum, may I join the wine gathering in November? Sounds like a good time.

Hey Beth,

Sure - as J2K says above, anyone who is willing to bring a bottle (or two) to share is welcome. Last month was my first time and we had a very good time.

dontime

Either Nov 6 or 13 is OK with me.
Looks like my brother-in-law is on call, and probably cannot make it.

Okay, let's go with November 13th!!

Mark, are you in???

Where is ecola?????

Beth,
Yes, you are welcome. Each person attending usually brings a bottle. Just let us know how many people so I can make reservations.

Any other lurkers out there?

The 13th it is! Put me down for 2.
Thanks J2K.

dontime

I'm in, need to see if my wife is interested.

I think ecola said he was going on vacation and so probably hasn't seen this yet.

I have a ton of paper bags in different colors from different places (don't ask me why I keep them) and will bring extras in case anyone needs one.

BTW I would actually discourage people from writing anything on their bag because then they will be able to tell which was theirs. Or is knowing that OK? We could also ask the waiter to take them into the next room and put them in different bags to keep it blind for everyone.

Mark

I'm in. Not sure if the better half can make it so put me in for 2 for now.

-Eric

Friday the 13th is good! Put me in for 1.

I'm in for 2

Put me in for 1. jlburd speaks highly of these tastings - thanks for putting this together. Looking forward to it.

Tony

Im in for 1.

Beth

I can't decide if I should bring Screagle or Valle Vista.

Oops I guess we aren't supposed to say what we're bringing, never mind!

Just bumping this up for any newbies........

J2K,
So we bring our wine, with foil removed, in a paper bag. Wine will be opened at the restaurant and left in the bag. Sounds like a lot of fun - we are looking forward to it.
dontime

J2K

I have a travel hiccup that knocks me out. Deduct 2 & see you next time

Ah, sorry guys, I have a family obligation now that will take me out of town all next weekend. Was looking forward to this one but will have to catch everyone next round for sure! BR

Bummer!! I 'm gonna have to call up some players from the minors if this pace keeps up! We'll miss you guys but will fill you in on the results of the event.

Okay let's confirm who is coming

J2K- 1 possibly 2
dontime-2
Mark - 1 possible 2
Tonypoli-1
ecola-2
beth1161-1

As always anyone else (bringing wine) is invited.

dontime,
your summary of the instructions above is correct. If you have a bottle that needs opened/decanted you can open it before the event. Just pour it back in the bottle and keep it in the bag.

We have reservations @ 6:30pm for 12 people. Please confirm how many people are coming (currently 10) in case I need to make adjustments to the reservation.

Looking forward to it!!

Oops forgot Hawk-- 1

I'll be there. My brother-in-law is on call and can't make it.

I'm sure it will be a great evening.

I'm still good for two although my better half is beginning to wonder if she will be the only female...
dontime

I will have to cancel - a trip to my home office got extended through Friday. Sorry. I was looking forward to this. My wife, Rosalie, is in Tokyo through the end of the year (works for Westinghouse). She was also quite interested. I hope both of us can make the next one. That will make for at least one additional female, dontime...

I will be there, my wife will not. I'm looking forward to checking out La Tavola and even if it's just going to be a couple people drinking out of paper bags I will still look forward to it ('cause I know the wine will be great)!

La Tavola called to confirm reservations and # of people, I reduced the reservations down to 10 people.

Now I still need to pick a wine (or two)!

See you at 6:30, in for 2.

-eric

Now I still need to pick a wine (or two)!

It'll be a game-time decision...